Sowing The Sparks
by Vaneria Potter
Summary: They were Tributes, they hated The Capitol, and they loved Rue. Peeta wasn't the only one to fall in love with Katniss, nor the only one she never noticed until the Reaping.
1. Prologue

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games Trilogy, or any of the characters contained therein, and no profit is being made from the publication of this fic._

_Summary: They were Tributes, they hated The Capitol, and they loved Rue. Peeta wasn't the only one to fall in love with Katniss, nor the only one she never noticed until the Reaping._

* * *

**PROLOGUE**

The first time Thresh Okeniyi saw Katniss Everdeen, he was impressed, and wished that there were more people like her in the world.

The Tribute from District 12 had been Primrose Everdeen, her little sister, who bore a striking resemblance to little Rue, Thresh's fellow Tribute. The slender, scared twelve-year-old had started walking to the stage, and been waylaid by her brave older sister actually fighting the Peacekeepers to pull Primrose back and volunteer in her stead.

The only Volunteers that Thresh knew of before had been from the Career Districts, and they volunteered for glory, not to save an innocent life from the twisted Hunger Games, as Katniss did. For a moment, Thresh thought that Katniss deserved to win, just for that.

His second thought was that if Primrose reminded him so much of Rue, the little gatherer who worked with his sister and had wormed her way into Thresh's heart, then perhaps the same would hold true in reverse. If Rue reminded Katniss of her sister, then perhaps the two of them could work together to keep the innocent child safe.

For seventy-three years, one thousand, seven hundred and seventy six people had played by the Capitol's rules, dancing to their tune.

In the seventy-fourth annual Hunger Games, Thresh had no intention of playing on anyone's terms but his own.

* * *

Watching the other reapings, Katniss thought that the ones who stuck out the most were the Career Districts... and District 11.

The boy was a giant, and would be one of the biggest challanges, but she also saw the hint of protectiveness in his stance, faint but fierce, toward the little girl that reminded her so much of Prim. It tugged at Katniss's heart that there was no-one to volunteer for her, and for a moment, she wished that one of them would win.

Gale would look after her family, and they could survive on cheese from Lady and by Healing those who couldn't afford the Town doctor. Rue and Thresh deserved to go home as much as she or Peeta did.

Katniss had prayed that she would never be in the Hunger Games, hating them to the point that she had decided never to have children, children who would have to stand in the town square, year after year, wondering if they would be the ones sent to their senseless, needless death.

As District 12's first Volunteer, and Female Tribute for the seventy-fourth annual Hunger Games, Katniss refused to be the Capitol's puppet.

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_A/N: Warning right now, this is going to be an AU. Katniss is described several times as respecting Thresh, and they both adored Rue and wanted her to survive. There are certainly worse foundations._

_Anyway, the next chapter should be up soon, and any constructive criticism is appreciated._

_Thanks,_

_Nat_


	2. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games, nor any of the characters contained therein._

_Summary: See previous chapter._

* * *

**CHAPTER ONE**

The District 11 prep teams might pretend to be nice, but there was nothing that would convince Thresh to see them as anything but scum.

They blathered on about how unfortunate it was that the poorer Districts had such a lack of concern for fashion or physical appearance, as Thresh tried to stop himself from pointing out that if it came to a choice between fashion and feeding your family, food came first.

He nearly hit one of them when they started talking about how he was so lucky to be chosen for the Hunger Games, oblivious to the fact that everyone but the Careers saw it as a Death Sentence, and how they were so honoured to make him look good for the sponsors.

Thresh gritted his teeth and went through some very unkind thoughts about the rich people who viewed children's lives as entertainment as the prep team plucked, polished, shaved _everywhere,_ scrubbed away what had to be several layers of skin, and covered him in lotion that smelled like the dried flowers that his grandmother made into sweet-smelling sachets for the richer people in their District.

And if Thresh found it humiliating and invasive, he could only imagine what Rue was going through, when he asked how much longer it would take and was 'reassured' that boys never took as much work as the female tributes to look desireable.

Hearing that, Thresh nearly broke something, preferably one of the prep team.

Rue was barely a month past her twelfth birthday! She was still a child, and they were subjecting her to _more_ of what he was going through, to make her attractive to rich old men and pampered women? It was not enough that they subjected the little girl to die in the Games, but it sounded like they were trying to turn her into a sexual object!

The District 11 Prep team would never know how lucky they were that the Stylist entered and they were dismissed before Thresh had the chance to respond.

* * *

The District 11 Stylists had to have slept with someone to get the job, because they certainly hadn't gained it through talent or imagination.

Tributes were supposed to reflect their district, but blue overalls and a wreath of wheat? District 2 were dressed in armor, District 1 covered in silks and gems. Even District 12 was dressed in some kind of black bodysuit that looked like raw coal. The Stylists had all the resources of the Capitol at hand to design the parade outfits, and _this _was the best they could do?

Thresh was too dark for pale colours to be complimentary, though the shade looked nice on Rue, but he supposed that it was still better than the Tributes in his first year of Reaping, who had been dressed to look like giant ears of corn.

He said as much to Rue, who giggled, and for a moment, the giant screens were focussed entirely on their chariot, with Thresh's faint smile as he leaned down to his small companion, protective and comforting to her youthful innocence.

It didn't last long, though, as the stadium was blown away by the appearance of District 12, who had taken 'coal' several steps further.

* * *

If certain of the other Stylists lacked imagination, the District 12 Stylists were just insane.

Katniss had been looking at the other Tributes, her eyes lingering on District 11, as Cinna spoke, but he caught her attention very quickly when he held up a lit taper. "_You're going to set us __on fire__?"_

Never mind the Hunger Games, she and Peeta were going to die before they even made it to the first day of training!

Suddenly, Miner's uniforms or coal dust looked _very_ appealing.

* * *

Thresh was still feeling a very strong urge to punch the Stylists and prep teams, which was not helped by the way Rue instinctively pressed closer to him when she spotted her prep team, so he took her hand and walked over to District 12, who were being sprayed with something to put the flames out.

If they even tried to touch Rue before the Interviews, Thresh would make them regret it.

* * *

Katniss felt very relieved, and Peeta was looking pleased about something, but they both looked surprised when the District 11 Tributes came over. The little girl said nothing, but the giant boy nodded at her. "You were very brave."

Did he mean at the Reaping, or just now in the Parade? "Thank you."

The little girl threw a frightened look over her shoulder, causing the boy to send the approaching group a threatening glare. "I'm Rue, and this is Thresh."

She reminded Katniss so much of Prim that she couldn't help a smile. "I'm Katniss."

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_A/N: And the first meeting._

_Thresh feels protective of Rue, so he instantly assumes the worst when the prep team say that girls take more work than boys. The Stylists probably try to play up the innocence for the youngest Tributes, but has no-one else thought how uncomfortable it would be for Rue to go through what Katniss (and presumably the other Female Tributes) did? _

_The Victors probably give each other a heads-up about what happens to the good-looking ones, so can you imagine being twelve and told that you have six years before you become a sex object for the highest bidder?_

_Thanks,  
_

_Nat  
_


	3. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: As usual, I don't own the Hunger Games, or any of the associated characters._

_Summary: See Previous Chapters._

* * *

**Chapter Two**

Thresh knew that the District 11 escort was partially responsible for helping them and getting sponsors, so killing him would be counter-productive.

That didn't make it any less tempting.

Of course the Careers didn't get any special treatment – other than spending years training at a special academy designed specifically for them to win the Hunger Games. Of course he and Rue shouldn't eat too much before training – even though this was the first time either of them had even seen a three-course meal.

And if he looked at Rue like that _one more time_, Thresh would punt him straight out the stained-glass window! At least the Stylists and Prep teams had backed off.

Did all of the other Tributes have to put up with this?

* * *

Thresh knew that his biggest advantage would be his physical strength, but he knew that the Trainer was right when she pointed out that the Survival Stations would be just as useful. He had seen, too many times, what happened when people were ill or injured, and didn't have or couldn't afford medicine.

Katniss was spending most of her time at the Survival Stations, too, tying knots, and identifying herbs, but she also spent time at the Archery Station.

She was only there ten or fifteen minutes at a time, but she returned frequently, and it seemed to Thresh that she was not learning, so much as re-adjusting to a different kind of bow.

Thresh couldn't help but smile to himself as he prepared to start climbing, then paused as he realized that Rue was no longer at the Knife Station where he had left her.

He started to look at the other stations when shouting broke out.

The Career boy from District 2 was stalking angrily toward another boy, accusing him of stealing a knife. The other, from District 6, replied with equal heat, shoving him as Peacekeepers ran to separate them.

Looking away from the confrontation between the Career and the other boy, shaking his head, Thresh saw Katniss looking up at the webbing near the roof. Rue was lying there, smiling mischievously as she toyed with the missing knife. Restraining himself to an amused grin rather than the booming laughter that was trying to break loose, Thresh caught the eye of the Girl on Fire, exchanging gleeful looks before they both looked up at Rue.

Abandoning his place at the rope-climbing station, Thresh walked over to where Katniss was tying knots. "Would you like to sit with us at lunch?"

Katniss looked surprised, but gave him a shy smile. "Sure. I look forward to it."

* * *

Peeta was still avoiding her, so Katniss had no problem with sitting with District 11. With Rue, who reminded of her of Prim with practically every gesture. With Thresh, who reminded her of herself, with the way he looked out for his partner, glaring at anyone who tried to intimidate her and making sure that she ate enough.

It was a new feeling, the way her stomach fluttered when he looked at her, with respect and admiration, or in some shared emotion. Her heart had leapt when they swapped amused glances when Rue stole the knife, both from glee and from the warmth in his eyes.

She wouldn't think about the possibility that she might have to fight them for her life. "You know, the Careers aren't the only ones who can form alliances."

Thresh put down his fork. "Eat your vegetables, Rue. Are you offering?"

Katniss smiled gently at the absent comment. "Yes. We stand a good chance working together. Are you accepting?"

Rue beamed up at her District Partner, mouth full of carrot, and Thresh gave her the same gentle smile that Katniss had. "Yes. So what's the plan?"

Rue swallowed her food. "I've been watching the other Tributes. The Careers are good with weapons, but if we get them away from survival supplies, they'll be helpless. The girl from District 5 looks like a Scavenger. She'll probably try to lie low while everyone else tries to kill each other off. The boy from 3 is good with electronics, so he'll probably try to make himself useful to whoever he thinks will keep him alive."

Katniss was impressed. "Well, you're certainly a mine of useful information. I can hunt, and I know how to survive in the woods."

Thresh nodded. "I'm strong and I know how to fight in a brawl. I have the best chance of surviving the Bloodbath."

Under the watchful eye of both her allies, who seemed to automatically take over the role of the parents that Rue had lost when she was six, the youngest of the three speared another carrot with her fork. "I'm fast and a good climber, so I can grab something and meet you away from the Cornucopia."

Despite herself, Katniss started to feel hopeful. "My mentor said to try and find water. Rue and I will grab supplies and get to shelter, and then we'll see which direction you went and find you. Hopefully there will be a bow, but I can make one if there isn't."

Thresh nodded again, slower as he considered. "Leave the weapons to me. When you get to shelter, climb as high as you can, most people either look down or ahead." He gave Rue an affectionate look. "Rue can run through trees like the branches are solid ground, and I'll head in the direction I see you go."

A bell rang, signalling the end of lunch, and they went back to the training room, side by side.

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_A/N: People in my other stories have criticised me for nagging about Reviews, so I figure you deserve an explanation. I associate 'review' with 'job well done', so seeing a review in my inbox tells me that I'm doing well. Lack of reviews is discouraging, and I'm mildly ashamed to admit that the belief that my work is not worth reading has been part of the reason for several stories remaining incomplete for a long time._

_Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and I'll try to have the next one up soon._

_Thanks_

_Nat_


	4. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: No, still not mine. It all belongs to Suzanne Collins._

_Summary: See Previous Chapters._

* * *

**Chapter Three**

The small alliance had quickly developed a habit of in the Rooftop Garden after dinner, to talk and plan. Tonight, Rue was bouncing excitedly, and Thresh was only just stopping himself from doing the same.

Katniss had received an 11 as her Training Score!

Rue's new confidence, thanks to her two protectors, had given her the strength not to panic, and the Gamemakers had given her a 7 when they looked around find her during the session, and didn't see her until she dropped down from the very high ceiling, smiling cheekily, just as one of them mentioned sending a search party, since it would look bad to lose a tribute.

It had caught their interest, though, and held it through Thresh, who had displayed not only strength, but also some skill with speed and moving silently. More imposing than the slight 12-year-old, he had received a 10.

But an 11 was nearly unheard of! They were bursting to know how Katniss had done it.

When she arrived, Katniss was not nearly as excited. Angry that the Gamemakers had been more interested in a roast pig than in her, even after three successive bulls-eyes, she had shot the apple out of the pig's mouth, scaring them.

They had retaliated by painting a target on her back.

* * *

In her interview, Rue mentioned how the best part of the Capitol was the people she had met, playing up childlike innocence as she turned to wave at Thresh and Katniss, who returned the gesture.

Caesar asked what she thought her greatest advantage would be. "I'm difficult to catch, and if they can't catch me, then they can't kill me. And I'm one third of the alliance who won't stab each other in the back at the first opportunity. We'll fight and die to protect each other, until the very end."

That had been Rue's idea. Letting the audience – and the sponsors – know about the alliance would improve the chances of _all of them_ getting gifts, if they were separated at any point.

Katniss's reply was impulsive, yet perfect. "How could we not, Little Jay?"

Katniss had explained that she had called her sister 'Little Duck', and the gossamer gown and bird-like wings suited Rue perfectly. The audience 'Awww-ed' over Rue as the buzzer ended the interview.

* * *

Thresh had managed to stick with one- or two-word answers, refusing to give the audience the satisfaction, but Caesar finally managed to coax a longer answer out of him when he asked if Thresh had a special someone waiting back in District 11.

Thresh couldn't stop his eyes flickering toward the other Tributes, specifically District 12. "Two, and each in a different way. They're special, all right. Probably the most amazing girls I've ever met… but they aren't waiting back home."

All eyes instantly turned to where Rue had broken protocol, as planned, and was sharing a chair with Katniss, half sitting on her lap, rather than going back to her own seat. Both girls were fairly private people, but they already cared deeply, and the open display would certainly get the audience's attention.

There were a number of audible sobs as Caesar found his voice again. "I'm sure we're all very sorry about that. Does she – do they – feel the same about you?"

With perfect timing, the two girls looked up and over at Thresh with shining eyes. Thresh wasn't looking at Caesar when he replied. "Yes."

The audience was a mix of cheers and tears as the buzzer sounded and Thresh walked back to the other Tributes, briefly squeezing Katniss's hand as she passed Rue over to him and walked up to the stage.

* * *

Katniss got tongue-tied easily, but she had managed to answer the questions Caesar asked her. What was her favourite part of coming to the Capitol, and a joke about the lamb stew. How had she felt during the parade, other than terrified that she would burn to death, and spinning to show the flames in her dress.

Then Caesar turned the subject to family and love, as they had known he would. "You must love your family very much, taking your sister's place like that. Tell me, did you ever think about starting your own, one day?"

Katniss tried to think of the best way to phrase it. Like Thresh, her eyes turned to the other Tributes, but hers stayed there the entire time, where Rue had taken over Thresh's lap. "If it could be with someone I loved, and if every part of me wasn't terrified that one day I might have to stand by and watch as my children were Reaped? I've thought about it."

She had thought about it, and firmly resolved to never have children, especially when it was hard enough just supporting herself, her mother and Prim. "But it doesn't matter now. I'm a Tribute in the Hunger Games, and so it the only person I could see myself building a family with, and the one I hope any daughter would be like. I don't think those odds are really in my favour."

The audience went crazy.

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_A/N: So, the Interviews come off as more than a little cheesy, and very different than the books._

_Katniss, Thresh and Rue have formed an alliance that is, in some ways, stronger than that of the Careers. Each Career Tribute talks about themselves. Those three talk about themselves __and the others_, _and the idea of three Tributes – a makeshift family, two in love and all three adoring of each other – gets the Capitol's attention more than the Star-crossed Lovers, which doesn't work now._

_Hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I warned you that it was going to be AU!_

_Thanks,_

_Nat._


	5. Chapter 4

_Disclaimer: Again? Really? Still not mine, all credit still goes to Suzanne Collins._

_Summary: See Previous Chapters_

* * *

**Chapter Four**

It was a good thing that the smaller alliance had already worked out a plan, or Thresh would have been tempted to go for Peeta specifically when the Bloodbath started.

Claiming to have been in love with Katniss for years had undermined their own strategy, though not by much, and set Peeta at the top of Thresh's shit list. He knew that the jealousy was irrational, especially since Katniss had looked as surprised as everyone else, and they had heard Katniss shouting at him as they waited for her on the rooftop, but Peeta had grown up in the same District, rather than only knowing Katniss for a few weeks, and what if she did have some buried feelings, deep down?

Both girls had informed him not to be absurd, and they lay on the rooftop together until it was time for dinner and Rue and Thresh had to leave.

In case he died the next day, Thresh took a risk and kissed Katniss on the cheek.

* * *

Rue and Katniss had been stationed near each other, and managed to grab two packs and a large sheet of plastic before they bolted for the woods.

Thresh fought his way through the boy Tributes from Districts 4 and 5, and the girl Tribute from District 8, retrieving a Machete, a silver bow and arrows, and a long knife for Rue before he also fled the Bloodbath.

* * *

The two girls found him early the next day, as he was kneeling by a dead fire and trying to see if he could get any hints about who had lit it.

He jumped to his feet when he heard a rustle, but relaxed when the rustle turned out to be Katniss and Rue. Katniss was holding a dead rabbit. Thresh didn't think through his reaction, but grabbed them both in a hug, lips brushing Katniss's cheek.

Finally, Rue was the one to pull away, reminding them that they needed to cook the animals.

It was day, so fire would not be as noticeable, and the wood was dry enough that there would be little smoke, especially if they just cooked the meat and got out of there.

* * *

"Was all of that stuff Peeta said true?"

Katniss looked back from passing Thresh another drumstick from the two grosslings she had shot after receiving the bow from Thresh. "What stuff?"

Rue's eyes sparkled, matching her smile as she adapted a 'kissy-kissy-voice'. "You know, _you and him_."

Katniss laughed, trying not to look at Thresh as she grew serious. "No. He saved me and my family, once, by giving us bread when we were starving, but Peeta was right when he said I didn't notice him until the Reaping, when I wondered if my debt to him would stop me from trying to survive like I promised Prim."

Rue moved closer as Katniss unconsciously leaned against Thresh, who wrapped an arm around both of them. "If I acted like I loved him, maybe it would be a kindness, before one of us died in the Games, but it wouldn't be real, and that isn't fair to either of us, especially after I met you."

Thresh rested his head on top of hers, obscenely glad, Rue cocooned between them. He hadn't been lying when he had claimed to be in love with Katniss during the interviews, even if it had been a good angle to play.

It was strange; he was in the middle of a fight to the death that only one person could win, yet he had never felt more at peace. "He won't be able to show mercy a second time, and imagine if he did win the games, and then found out it was a lie."

* * *

It seemed like _everyone _had got caught up in the fire storm sent by the Gamemakers, and while they had made it to a river in time to sooth the minor burns, Katniss and Thresh still had some more severe ones.

Rue, with only a few burns on her hands and one thigh, had brought back some food from foraging, appearing with a broad smile at the same time as a silver parachute, holding a gift of burn medicine. They ate sparingly, applying the ointment to each other, as Rue told them what she had come across on her food-finding trip.

The Careers had been joined by Peeta, much to everyone's surprise, and had been hunting Tributes. The girl from District 8 and the boy from District 10 were both dead, and the Careers had finally cornered Foxface, who had escaped death by climbing a tree. Unable to reach her, the Career pack had settled in for the night, reasoning that she had to come down sometime.

None of them had noticed that the upper branches of the tree held a nest of Tracker Jackers.

* * *

Thresh and Katniss had flatly refused to let Rue climb up the same tree and cut the nest down, no matter how much she protested that she had the best chance of success at getting that close.

The smoke might have temporarily sedated the wasps, but by now, they would be waking up, and there was no way for Foxface or the Career pack to miss the sound of someone sawing through a branch.

Instead, they got close enough for Katniss to have a relatively clear shot. They still had the large sheet of plastic, and were close to some underbrush to have cover. Katniss wouldn't be able to sever the branch, but she would be able to shoot the nest itself. As soon as she released the arrow, she would join Rue and Thresh under the plastic, which they had covered with leafy branches, where they could wait out the storm.

* * *

Glimmer, the girl from District 1, was right underneath the nest when it fell. Foxface escaped, but she and the girl from District 4 had been badly stung, and it was touch and go if they survived.

The rest of the Careers got away in time, fleeing for the lake, but they wouldn't be going anywhere for a while.

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_A/N: There are only one or two more chapters to go after this, and an epilogue. There is a twist, as I warned earlier, but I think you'll like it._

_Not so much romance in this chapter, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway._

_Thanks_

_Nat_


	6. Chapter 5

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games, or any of the associated characters. All credit goes to Suzanne Collins_

_Summary: See previous chapters_

_A/N: One more chapter after this, and then the Epilogue._

* * *

**Chapter Five**

There were eight Tributes left.

Spying on the Careers again, Rue reported that they had all of their supplies piled up near their camp by the lake, that the Tracker Jackers had made sure that they wouldn't be going anywhere for a day or two, and that Peeta and the girl from District 4 were no longer with the Career pack, replaced by the boy from 3.

The cannons for Foxface and the girl from 4 had sounded last night.

They had either died of the stings, like Glimmer, or been wounded enough to become easy prey for either another tribute or one of the random horrors that the Gamemakers threw in during quiet periods.

The Career Academies focused on weapons training more than survival skills, probably because the highly-trained Careers almost always survived the Bloodbath and got their pick of supplies. But if you took away the supplies, they would starve to death in days.

* * *

Thresh and Katniss followed Rue to the Career camp the next time, to see if they could spot anything that Rue might have missed, and to form a plan that would even the odds.

The Careers had obviously not found anything that worked on Tracker Jacker stings, but they had been caught in the fire storm too, and were suffering from two sets of injuries. As Thresh, Katniss and Rue watched, the boy from District 3 was sent to get more burn medicine from the pile of supplies.

Katniss frowned as he seemed to play some kind of hopscotch as he got closer, avoiding the piles of dug up earth as if…

As if they would explode.

Clever.

Thresh had noticed it too, making the connection after looking at the dug up ground near the starting plates by the Cornucopia. "District 3 is electronics and explosives. He must have found a way to re-activate the mines."

Katniss nodded. "We learn about explosions in school, because of how easy it is to accidentally set off an explosion in a mine. They'll be set off by touch or by some kind of remote, but we'll never get that close without them spotting us, and Clove can still throw knives, even if they can't get up and chase us."

Rue's quick eyes and clever mind had not been idle in the short period of observation. "Maybe we won't have to get close. Look!"

She pointed out a sack of apples, hanging over the side of a barrel. "Katniss shot down the nest, so she can shoot down the sack of apples, or at least rip it open and the apples will set off the mines."

It was a good idea. Katniss tilted her head in thought. "We want to move as far out of sight as we can, and still hit the apples. Explosions cause shockwaves, and it'll be no use blowing up the supplies if we're badly injured along the way."

* * *

The Careers were (unfortunately) far enough away that none of them died in the explosion, though Clove and the boy from District 3 were blown off their feet and into the lake.

The boy from District 3, who had come up with the idea and set the mines, had barely pulled himself out of the water before Cato stormed over from where he and Marvel had been attempting to sort through the wreckage, and broke his neck.

Picking themselves up from where they had been thrown to the ground by the aftershocks, Thresh, Katniss and Rue made themselves scarce.

* * *

There were seven Tributes left.

Marvel, Clove and Cato, Katniss and Peeta, and Rue and Thresh.

There were four Tributes left before Katniss, Thresh and Rue would have to face an unthinkable choice.

* * *

At the closing of the day, after the Anthem and the day's dead tributes, there was a crackling sound, and the voice of Claudius Templesmith resounded throughout the Arena. "Attention Tributes! Upon examining the rules of the Hunger Games, there has been a discovery. This year, there can be two Victors, as long as they are from the same District."

The choice has just become even more unthinkable.

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_A/N: No, that is one of the few things I am not going to change._

_I look forward to reading people yelling at me, (if I manage to drive people to that much emotion, I've done a good job) but I do have a reason for writing it this way.  
_

_Two Victors is stretching it, even if the Gamemakers never intended to follow through on that promise, and they would only have got away with it by adding the proviso that they both be from the same district. There is no way that they could figure out something to allow three Victors, no matter how much Thresh, Katniss and Rue play up their angle._

_Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, however short it was. I'm posting now because I won't have time tomorrow, between work that will have me getting up at 5:30 am and the Movie Date I promised my sister._

_Thanks_

_Nat._


	7. Chapter 6

_Disclaimer: Still not mine_

_Summary: See previous chapters.  
_

_A/N: Because work didn't need me after all and because **Olive Monster** has been going crazy trying to figure ot the twist (that's a good thing, hon, I'm flattered) and because I'm dying to hear the reaction, the final chapter is being posted early. As a result, I hope to get home after the rest of the day's events and find my inbox full of people either shouting at me or commenting on possibly the first fic of it's kind, at least on this site._

**Chapter Six**_  
_

There were three Districts who still had both of their partners left, but that didn't mean that the Victor had to be from one of those Districts, if they were the only ones left standing.

Marvel was a Career, but he wasn't entirely stupid. As the last echoes of the announcement died away, he ran. Clove brought him down in a single throw.

Thresh knew that Katniss would want both of them to go home. Other than Clove and Cato, he and Rue were the only District Partners left.

He also knew that the Gamemakers would never allow there to be more than one Victor, no matter what they said. There had been romance in the Hunger Games before, including that of Katniss's own Mentor.

None of them had been allowed a happy ending.

Why start now?

He walked over to Katniss, who stood by a tree. "Do you believe them?"

Katniss looked up. "I don't know. But isn't it worth taking a chance? I want Rue to live, but I can't watch you die."

Thresh nodded. "And I won't let anyone kill you. Let's just get to the end. Even if we only have days, I want to spend them with you."

Katniss had never wanted children, but she thought that the love she felt for Rue was probably what loving a child should be like. She thought that if she ever married, it would be to Gale, her friend and Partner.

Now she was in the Hunger Games, with Rue and Thresh as Allies who were so much more than Allies. Katniss was not usually one to make impulsive decisions – too much rested on her shoulders for that – but she made one now.

For the few days she had left, she would love Rue as the child that Katniss would never bear, acting as the mother that Rue had lost long ago. Thresh…

Was a week long enough to fall in love? Enough time to realize that you couldn't imagine life without someone?

Somehow, she thought so.

Slowly, Katniss reached up, drawing Thresh down, and kissed him.

* * *

There had been no cannon for Peeta yet, but taking him out would make it easier to take out the Girl on Fire, who would no longer have anyone to fall back on for an alliance. The Careers had always turned on each other without a second thought, when the time came, and never considered that Thresh and Rue would not do the same.

Clove and Cato were still suffering a little from the stings, but they were well enough to pick off the Baker's Boy from District 12, whose strength would be greatly reduced from hunger and blood-loss, after Cato wounded him.

Peeta's strength was failing, but his art skills were phenomenal, and he had camouflaged himself so well that it was impossible to find him, even if you were standing centimeters away.

That was Clove's downfall.

She didn't see him until she was too close, when a muddy hand darted out quicker than lightning and closed around her ankle.

Clove tried to spin around to find the owner of the hand, but Peeta yanked on her ankle, pulling her off balance. Her head struck one of the boulders that lined Peeta's hiding place on the way down, the angle of impact breaking her neck.

Close enough to see what happened, but not close enough to stop it, Cato reached Clove in time to see the light fade from her eyes.

Peeta did not close his eyes and retract his hand fast enough

Cato did not kill him quickly.

* * *

Thresh was bigger and heavier than Cato, so instead of struggling to get away as they all sheltered on top of the Cornucopia and the Mutts prowled the base, he threw himself backward, crushing Cato between his body and the hard metal of the Cornucopia. It stunned him long enough for Thresh to scramble away, and Rue's knife embedded itself in Cato's leg, making him stumble.

Rue had been aiming for his heart, and the sound of his screams as he fell to where the Mutts waited made her wish she had hit her mark.

The twelve-year-old, no longer innocent, sobbed and clung to Thresh as Katniss drew an arrow from her quiver.

It was a mercy killing, and preparation for the one she would perform when the sun rose.

There were three Tributes left.

* * *

Thresh had been right.

The Capitol and the Gamemakers had wanted suspense and anguish, but they had never intended to allow two Victors. The rulebook had been 're-examined', and only one Victor would be allowed, after all.

Katniss and Thresh exchanged glances, looking at Rue, who was slowly waking up after finally falling asleep after the terror of the Muttations - and what they had done to Cato - the previous night. "Rue, honey?"

Rue's voice was muffled from where her head rested on Katniss's chest, the rest of her lying in Thresh's lap. Thresh gently lifted her up. "Katniss and I are going to find breakfast. We won't be long."

Rue's head snapped up. "What if something attacks while you're gone?"

Katniss kissed her forehead, as she dimly remembered her own mother doing, before The Accident that took her father's life and her mother's awareness of anything around her. Even after Mrs Everdeen had recovered, it had not been the same. "Nothing will happen to you, I promise."

The Cornacopia was warming under the sun, and Rue snuggled down into the three jackets that formed a small bed. She knew that the Hunger Games had danger waiting in every second, but she also knew that Thresh and Katniss would keep her safe. They wouldn't go far.

* * *

They didn't go far, just far enough to reach the nightlock bush they had spotted the previous day. Silently, they picked a few berries each, needing no words to convey how they felt.

Hands full of poison, their eyes met for a final time. "Gale will take care of my family."

"My sister and grandmother will be all right without me."

A soft smile, a last kiss.

"I can't watch either of you die, and they always need a Victor."

"Rue is so young, and she deserves to live."

Hands joined, closed fingers lifted to mouths.

Two cannons rang out.

* * *

The Anthem and the Announcement of a Victor drowned out the keening wail of sorrow and loss.

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* * *

_A/N: Yes, I'm a tease and a horrible person._

_On the other hand, I haven't read a single fic where Katniss __doesn't __come out of the Hunger Games, and this - Thresh and Katniss sacrificing themselves for Rue to win - makes a far more powerful impact than two lovers being unwilling to live without each other._

_Just the Epilogue to go._

_Thanks, _

_Nat_


	8. Epilogue

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games, nor do I own any of the associated characters. Finally I can stop stating the obvious._

_Summary: See previous chapters_

* * *

**Epilogue**

Rue looked like an angel, dressed in white and crowned with a diadem of the flowers whose name she shared.

Cinna did good work, in honour of the Girl on Fire they had both adored, and he had made her into an angel of grief.

Even as she pretended to smile at the audience, who cooed as they saw her trying to put on a brave face, silent tears ran down her face, as they had every moment since she awoke.

Rue was an orphan with five younger siblings, she knew how to be strong for others, but Katniss and Thresh had let her be vunerable, just for a few days, while they took on the role of protectors.

Rue had always grieved quietly, in private, where no one could be angry at her for it.

Now she grieved openly.

She _wanted_ people to be angry! She _wanted_ them to _see_ the true price of the Hunger Games! Let them _realize_ that their entertainment came at the cost of children's lives! Let them _watch_ the love that Katniss and Thresh held for her, that made them sacrifice their lives so that she would live!

Rue listened, and waited, and used the gathered information to its best effect. She had heard her Mentor and the other Victors talking about a growing rebellion, whisper that it had needed only a spark, a figurehead, a Girl on Fire, to make it spread.

Rue was not the Girl on Fire, or the Strong Protector, or the Monsterous Boy, or the Doomed Lover, or even The Sly One. She was too young to stand as a living symbol, for people to listen to her.

So she would be the spark in a different way. Katniss and Thresh had died rather than be parted, but more than that, they had killed themselves for _her._

She would be the innocent child that the Girl on Fire died to save, the sweet friend that the Strong Protector had killed to defend. She would be the face of the victims, the catalyst that made the people of Panem rise up to fight against the cruelty that they had condoned for too long.

Rue was the innocent life that the Capitol had thought to use as proof of their power, never intending her to be their downfall.

Rue was all that the Girl on Fire and the Strong Protector had died to preserve.

Rue was the Little Mockingjay,

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* * *

_A/N: I don't intend to cover __Catching__Fire__ or __Mockingjay__, because I don't have the time or the inspiration._

_If anyone else wants to continue this, however, feel free. Just remember to credit me in an A/N, because it's annoying when I have to explain to the Mods that no, my story was here first._

_Thanks to everyone who read, and especially to everyone who reviewed._

_Nat_


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